March
19
Tags
While I Was Out
So I’m finally getting caught up on my Automotive News (weekly industry newspaper) backlog. As in, I’ve made it from July to November in the last several weeks. Turns out I missed all sorts of interesting things, like the Takata airbag recall (flying shards of metal are NOT okay), Cadillac raising a stir by relocating some of its team to New York and naming its new flagship sedan the CT6 instead of…what, Fleetwood?, the Matthew McConaughey Lincoln commercial spoofs, and oh so much more. I know you missed my punditry on these items. Never fear, I am making a comeback. Or I will as soon as my two-month-old law firm takes off. And I get the bills paid. And stuff. And I’m already pondering what vehicle I should get for a work car. Because APPARENTLY responsible business owners need vehicles with a certain gravitas. And apparently a fire-engine-red, fire-breathing MINI with a rear spoiler stolen from a Greco-Roman chariot, taking corners on two wheels is not current with my image. Or, at least, with one of my personalities. Never fear. The MINI remains. I fear for the day when there will no longer be cars with manual transmissions, so I intend to hold onto the MINI with the grip of death, in anticipation of the day that an affordable driver’s car ceases to exist. Plus, I’m not exactly in the market for another vehicle yet. Gotta pay the other bills first, and all. But it’s fun to dream. I’m thinking along the lines of Audi A7, Mercedes CLS, Porsche Macan (yes, an SUV; shudder), Range Rover Evoque (ditto), Tesla, etc. Several years pre-owned obviously OR a very, very good lease deal. I just saw a lease for a Maserati Ghibli that’s only $30 per month more than my MINI payment. I’m not sure if that means the Ghibli is a great deal or the MINI reaaaaalllly wasn’t. I’m going with the Ghibli being a great deal. If we’re talking about reality, Mazda has some pretty amazing looking new cars these days. I am thinking in particular of the new Mazda3 hatchback. And the CX-5, one of the nicest new crossovers by far. If you are in the market for reasonably-priced new, I strongly recommend giving Mazda serious consideration. By the way, have I mentioned lately that all American drivers are horrible? I am so looking forward to the days of self-driving cars. For the rest of you. Remember: you have mirrors and turn signals for a reason. Someday Siri will do it all for you, and then I won’t worry about my safety. Until then, USE THEM. Oh, and here. Since this post already has neither rhyme nor reason, have a gratuitous photo of a racing Bentley. Because fabulous. 
Almost as fabulous as a racing Porsche with a skull and crossbones on its hood.
MOTORista 
Just a reminder that if you get a Porsche Macan or a Mazda CX-5, I CALLED IT FIRST. (Of course, I still have neither….but it must count that I WANT one….)
My day is made. You have blogged. And now I have more cars to look at!
As for your work car, I’m curious to know the level of gravitas to which you are gravitating. And the level of schizophrenia to which you aspire in your search for a yin to the Mini’s yang.
I’m still hoping to build a race car that unfolds to become an RV so I can travel across the country in style, then take off down some rollickin’ country roads at ridiculously high speeds. Safely, of course.
On the subject of punditry, and as a fan of parody, I submit my vote for a blog entry on the Matthew McConnaughey Lincoln commercial.
I just watched the commercials and the parodies. Hilarious! Oh, a post is coming!!
Rob, too bad you aren’t closer to Utah. My 12 year old is just dying to turn a car into a camper. (However, unlike you, he’s not too concerned with whether it can still drive afterward.)
Lori, you remember that van I used to have in NY? It made a great camper when I drove back to Seattle. A little short on the amenities, but it kept the bears out when I was in Yosemite! (Secretly, I always wanted to borrow Mike and Margie’s van. It was awesome!)
I was going to try and turn my Dodge caravan (no longer needed to haul kids around) into an RV once the kids all left home, but daughter #1 drover over a muffler and ripped a huge hole in the transmission, so it’s heading for the junk yard ’cause we don’t have room for a non-functional car in the driveway. Unless you want me to ship it to Utah so your son can play with it.
Rob, I got a big “yes!” from him on that one. What’s so funny, though, is that just last week I was telling my boys about your minivan in NY. It was the first minivan I had ever seen, and I just loved driving it! (Remember, you drove a company car and let me drive your van to work at Sears??)
Sorry, too late. The junkman came and took it away. I was very sad. I love my vans! But now that the kids are getting older and moving out, we don’t find any occasions requiring them any more. And there’s no space in the garage to keep a fixer-upper, although I wish I had the time & money to get it back in tip-top condition. (I do remember letting you drive the van in NY. You were the only one I trusted with that responsibility.)